1. Field
This disclosure relates generally to a content addressable memory (CAM), and more specifically, to error detection in a CAM.
2. Related Art
As consumers demand smaller devices, the semiconductor devices within the devices also must shrink. When shrinking semiconductor devices, the bit cell area decreases, causing an increase in the possibility of a soft error rate induced failures. Soft errors can occur, for example, when external energy (such as due to alpha particle bombardment) is imparted onto the circuit, causing bit values in the CAM to change. These soft errors may result in multiple hit errors. Therefore, as CAM geometries continue to shrink, error detection becomes increasingly important.